Summarit 75mm or Summarit 90mm

[davidcolemandc]

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Hello,

 

I'm a new member to the forum and a new, very very happy M8 owner. I currently own a 28mm Elmarit and a 50mm 2.0 cron to go with my M8. Very happy with both lenses. I'm shopping for my third lens and I was thinking of getting a short telephoto for portraits. I'm considering either the 75mm f2.5 Summarit or the 90mm f2.5 Summarit.

 

I wanted to get your thoughts on which of the two lenses you would recommend that would be a versatile lens for portraits and the occasional long shot? I heard that 90 is more difficult to focus.

 

Thank you.

David

[c6gowin]

Welcome to the forum David. There have been several threads on here regarding the 75mm and 90mm Summarits. In my opinion you can't go wrong with either lens and should decide based on which focal length would suit your needs the most.

 

I was lucky enough to get an early production 75mm Summarit for evaluation last November and posted my thoughts in the thread shown below. I hated to have to return the lens to Leica and ended up buying one for myself as soon as I could. I have been very happy with it for the few months I have owned it. I will say that the 75mm frame lines seem to be the most inaccurate of them all, but you get used to it rather quickly. I didn't get a chance to try the 90mm Summarit.

 

Guy Mancuso tested all four Summarit lenses and posted his findings in the threads I linked below. It worth noting that Guy ended up selling his 90mm Cron and buying a 90mm Summarit.

 

My thread on 75mm Summarit

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/38393-first-impressions-75mm-summarit.html

 

Guy's thread on 75mm Summarit

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/40693-leica-75mm-trio-comparision-lux-cron.html

 

Guy's thread on the other Summarits

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/38846-summarit-series-35-50-90-ugly.html

and here

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/39467-summarit-series-35-50-90-sharpness.html

 

Discussion of Erwin Putts review of the Summarits here

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/46358-erwin-puts-third-part-review-summarit.html

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[Printmaker]

Hello,

I wanted to get your thoughts on which of the two lenses you would recommend that would be a versatile lens for portraits and the occasional long shot? I heard that 90 is more difficult to focus.

 

Thank you.

David

 

I've always been a fan of 90 mm lenses. Unless you shoot a lot of portraits (and DSLRs are better in this area), the 90 will prove a more versatile lens than the 75. It gives tighter head shots and has a longer reach. Plus, you have a 50 so the 75 is not that much longer. The 90 is nearly twice the 50. If you just had a 28, then the 75 would be the next logical choice.

 

If you use a magnifier on your eyepiece, you will find focusing much easier.

 

Just my .02.

 

Tom

[Hacker]

Unless you shoot a lot of portraits (and DSLRs are better in this area), the 90 will prove a more versatile lens than the 75.

 

I'm not sure DSLRs are better, though in some instances, they can be. I rather think of their use as different.

[Eoin]

David,

 

I've been searching for the past year and a half for the answer to this question and believe I've found the answer.

I originally had the 75 Summicron and while it was a superb lens it was just too perfect rendering every ounce of detail even wide open. Also I found it very close in terms of focal length with the 50 Summicron, many times I'd frame a subject only to discover I'd also caught another 10% outside the frame lines.

 

I found a cheap 90 Summicron, the last version before the current Asph for $600 (€500) and I fell in love with it straight away. It's just perfect for what I want to do with portraits. Wide open it has a fingerprint which softens the lines and hides some of the fine detail yet still gives a strong image. Close it down to 2.8 and the fine detail starts to come back and by f:/4 you can cut your self on the sharpness. It's almost like having 2 lenses in 1,, and it's cheap by leica standards.

 

The focus throw is long, which is good IMO as it allows fine tuning of the point of focus, you'll absolutely need a 1.25x magnifier with it unless you've the eyes of a hawk but it's much more accurate with the 90 framelines than the 75 ever was.

[stunsworth]

Hi David

 

Welcome to the forum! If you didn't already have the 50mm Summicron I'd suggest the 75mm, but since you already have a 50mm I'd suggest the 90mm. The 90mm will give you a little more seperation in terms of focal length from your existing Summicron.

 

I wouldn't expect that you'd find focussing the Summarit on an M8 too difficult, but if you did there's always the possibility of buying a magnifier for the viewfinder - either the expensive Leica version or a cheaper Far-Eastern copy.

[delander †]

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Actually the 50 Summicron being a 67 on the M8 (mine's almost a 69) is very good for portraits, even head and shoulders. I also have 75 and 90 but rarely use the 90. If I had to give up one of these focal lengths it would be the 90. The 75 on an M8 is of course a 90 on FF, the classic focal length for portraits. For this type of work going from 50 to 75 is a bigger difference than you would possibly expect and you can get too remote from your subject with a 90.

 

Even though you have a 50 I 'vote' for the 75.

 

Jeff

[Ecaton]

Actually the 50 Summicron being a 67 on the M8 (mine's almost a 69) is very good for portraits, even head and shoulders. I also have 75 and 90 but rarely use the 90. If I had to give up one of these focal lengths it would be the 90. The 75 on an M8 is of course a 90 on FF, the classic focal length for portraits. For this type of work going from 50 to 75 is a bigger difference than you would possibly expect and you can get too remote from your subject with a 90.

 

Even though you have a 50 I 'vote' for the 75.

 

Jeff

 

75 x 1.33 =90:o you sure?

[wlaidlaw]

I am not sure that, personally, I would go for either of these two lenses. I have the Summarit 75 and whereas there is absolutely nothing wrong with it, I feel there is also nothing terribly special about it. It seems to my eye to give a slightly flat rendition or maybe I just like higher contrast.

 

On my Solms tour on Monday, I mentioned that my first Summarit 75 had been wildly out of focus. It was suggested that it must have been dropped on the way to me, as it could not possibly have left the factory wrong! I don't take a lot of portraits and it may be that the gentler contrast and softer rendition are more desireable than the razor sharpness of the 75 Summicron.

 

Now that the 90 Summarit is out, Elmarit-M 90/2.8 prices have dropped slightly. That is the lens I would go for. It is light, small, beautifully made, has a built in telescopic hood and to my eye, renders/draws perfectly.

 

Wilson

[Guest Olof]

Try to get the Elmarit 90mm

[Nick De Marco]

I just picked up what I believe to be the bargain lens of the year for me, a Summicron 90mm f2 used lens - with perfect options (though marks on outside metal part of lens). I bought it from MW classics for 235 pounds. I can't believe it's such a good lens for the price. Although it's big and heavy, I heard these old summi 90s often have very good used prices, and of course you have f2 compared to the summarit's f2.5.

 

I also have an Elmarit 90mm f2.8, which I also picked up at a very good price from MW classic. It's nice and light but I don't think I will be using it again (and neve used it much before) now I have the summi.

 

Here is one of the fist pics taken with it on my M8 at home in the evening at 320 ISO at either f2.5 or f2.8 (can't recall now)

 

[delander †]

75 x 1.33 =90:o you sure?

 

Oops!

 

Jeff

[Hacker]

75mm Lux f1.4, Zeiss 85f2 (Sonnar) are alternate choices.

[woodyspedden]

I would strongly suggest you at least look at the 75 Lux before making a final decision. Drawing style is an important part of the equation and the 75 lux is a champ for portraits IMHO. YMMV

 

Best

 

Woody

[davidcolemandc]

Thanks to everyone. Lots of great suggestions here and some that I wouldn't have thought of.

 

Thanks again,

David

[lja]

I have both the Summarit 75mm and the 90mm. I regret buying the 90mm. It is, for me at any rate, difficult to focus and the close focus is hopeless. Minimum focus is over a meter away from the subject. The 75mm is easier to use. If I'd not already bought this Summarit I'd go for the Elmar with the Macro kit.

[ramosa]

I would definitely get the 90. Thus, you'd have 28-50-90, which is an opportune setup for M8 or, someday, M9. One thing that I have learned in my 3.5 years of M8 ownership is that some lens combos make sense on an M8, while others can make sense on an M8 or M9. That matters for me, as I suspect I will move to FF at some point.

Edited July 3, 2011 by ramosa

[Peoplewing]

Since one Week, I own the Summarit 75. It is really wonderful, perfect for reportage style portraits. The first results are stunning on my M246. 

Now I think about selling the Summarit 90. It's also a very good lens, but it's much more difficult to get the right fokus with it compared to the 75.

I can imagine that the Summarit 75 will become my ervery day lens on the M246 when looking out for people as theme.

Udo 

[satijntje]

A well know Leica seller from Germany is currently selling a lot of 25 NEW Summarits 75mm 2.5 for nearly half price on Ebay!

John

Edited April 1, 2016 by satijntje

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[arno_nyhm]

with a 28 (Normal wide on M8)  and 5o (portait tele on M8) existing, i would now rather go for a real wide angle like a 21 or even 18 than stretching it towards the longer end.

 

you can still cover the long end by getting an older 90/2,8 elmarit or even a 90/4 elmar for less than 200 each instead of spending a lot of money for a new 75 or 90 lens that probably wont be used all too frequent on the M8.

 

or are you planning on getting an M9 soon?

 

havin only the choice of 75 and 90 i'd go for the 90. the 75 doesnt even show a different frame to the 50 on the M8. that would be hard to keep in mind in day-to-day use and might result in misframing once in a while.